Nicholas Denton on His 'Demoralizing' Mishap During Nude Sex Scene in a Carriage for Dangerous Liaisons
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The new Dangerous Liaison adaptation is packed with plenty of steamy scenes, but the show's star Nicholas Denton wants to clear one thing up before you tune in.
"They're not as sexy to film as they are to watch," Denton admitted to PEOPLE at the show's N.Y.C. premiere Wednesday. "I mean, we've got an intimacy coordinator on set and she's looking out for us and making sure that it's safe and secure and respectful."
He went on to add that the film's love scenes serve a purpose in the Starz series, which is based on the famously sexy 18th century novel Les Liaisons Dangereuses (which also inspired the 1988 film of the same name and Cruel Intentions).
"I think the thing that I love about this show that it's not sex for the sake of sex. It's not gratuitous," Denton said. "It's actually quite beautifully emotional. And I think that's why they look so real and feel so real as an audience going, looking at it feels it."
But that's not to say that filming those "beautifully emotional" moments is always smooth sailing, Denton adds, describing a particularly awkward blooper during one heated scene.
"So we were doing a scene in which the carriage was meant to go on three after calling action," he recalled. "I'm naked at this point and there's a body double in there for Paloma," he added, referring to actress and singer Paloma Faith, who plays Florence de Régnier.
However, the carriage driver missed the cue and started going on "one" rather than three, catching Denton off guard.
"And I am propelled from one side of the carriage onto the other and this bean like body is flung across," he said. "That was fun and definitely demoralizing at the same time!"
Starz
The series, which takes place in Paris on the eve of the revolution, tells the story of how a pair of scheming ex-lovers attempt to exploit others with the power of seduction. Denton plays the Vicomte de Valmont, and Ratched actress Alice Englert plays Denton's love interest Camille.
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The 1988 film, which stars Glenn Close, Michelle Pfeiffer and John Malkovich, is considered a classic, and Denton says he was very aware of the legacy while taking on the character.
"It's like they've massive shoes to fill," he tells PEOPLE. "But I think I wanted to put my own flesh on those bones that were already made when the book was written. Those characters are super potent and so strong to read about. Although I did try to put my own version on it, there's always that kind of centerpiece that holds Valmont."
So how does he differ from Valmont? "Pretty much every which way!"
Dangerous Liaisons will premiere Nov. 6 on Starz.
